Four get nod to AZB Mumbai-region partnership (Jha, Ghosal, Ved, Veeragavan, from l to r)

AZB & Partners has promoted 4 of its associates to partner level, three of whom in Mumbai had all joined AZB from Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas (CAM) in the last two years, with or shortly after partner Ashwath Rau had moved.

In Mumbai, it promoted:

Aditya Jha (NLSIU Bangalore 2008 graduate, who had joined in 2016 from CAM),

Pallabi Ghosal (2009 NLIU Bhopal grad, who had joined in 2016 from CAM), and

Prerak Ved (GLC Mumbai 2005 and qualified Bombay Incorporate Law Society solicitor, who had joined in 2016 from CAM).

In Bangalore, AZB promoted senior associate

Bhuvana Veeraragavan (2008 LLB Pune University) to partnership. She had joined in 2010 from AM Law Advocates & Solicitors.

Satpute, Srinivasa become AZB counsel (l to r)

Furthermore, two were promoted to the counsel rung:

Pallavi Satpute in Mumbai, and

Niyatha Srinivasa in Bangalore.

AZB Delhi region promotions have not yet been announced.

All promotions take effect from 1 April.

2017 promos

Last year, AZB had promotedseven to partnership, including Kashish Bhatia, who had also joined in 2016 with Rau.

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Is it? [...]% of all the Senior Associates who moved with Ashwath have left. Aditi [...] have returned to CAM. Priyoma has moved to Trilegal. Devina to another law firm and two others to in house roles.

[Edit: We have not been able to confirm three of the moves mentioned in the comment as having moved]

Kian should do a status update on how many Akshay and ashvat people moved, how many still there and how they have performed. Without verified facts, MPO staff hired by firms to spread fake news will keep spreading rumours. Also what is their current team size? Is Ganesh back or has left? Which is a better firm after law colg?

Its sad and unfortunate to see associates being dragged into this and identified by name. Kian - this is against your stated policy of naming individuals, and will understand if this post is not published as being too critical! Why call the merit of young naive associates into question on LI??!

Every firm has a different pace and not everyone can survive the rigours of normal track in big firms. So plz plz let’s respect and not name-shame young lawyers on this forum.

Have checked, and yes, those SAs have left though not sure about CAM in case of Pragya, and that doesn't necessarily imply all of them have left with bad blood or for bad reasons, or without the firm having assisted them going in-house, for instance.

AZB's gain or loss. Future will decide. The senior partner who they followed is clearly putting his strategy right. He is building his power base. Madam Z is clearly breeding her own competition. All the best to her!

The reality of our legal market is the absence of genuine institutions - with entire firms in many cases being "private armies" of leaders who mentor and nuture their juniors. But leadership is not private property of a few. As also evinced by the likes of Akshay and Abhijeet, people will follow leaders - its called a free market, which creates opportunity, promotes merit and offers clients better services. When you manage to attract and retain a collection of leaders who are tied together by a common objective (other than making one family richer), you progress towards an organization and perhaps one day, an institution. I hope for the sake of our country that we get there sooner rather than later, else we'll become a market dominated by foreign firms - some firms that are growing rapidly already hold out that promise.

People who have spent nearly two decades in a firm can't be described as snakes - and since you do, your concept of a lion requires examination. Are those who turn on their own families lions? After all, animals do turn on their own families for territory. Time will tell if AZB have added well to their pride, all current indicators are that they have - even if you can't see them with your yellow eyes.

Nearly two decades in a firm and such elaborate drafting? Ah, you give yourself away. The truth must grate. And sometimes when you don’t contribute to making one family richer, you contribute to making three families richer.

Congratulations Niyatha - truly well deserved recognition for a loyal AZB veteran. Really happy for you, the four new partners and Pallavi. Acknowledgement of back breaking effort for nearly a decade or more - by a system that is pure merit unlike many others.

Sadly, many comments on this site are by people furthering their own political agenda or venting their frustrations, in most cases missing the main "news" they are commenting on - fueled no doubt by Kian, whose headlines and content are aimed at generating more "hits" and gossip, even if bitchy and hurtful. Of course this comment may not be published, given his very selective censorship - but this is at least for you Kian :-)

In comments moderation, we generally allow for some bitchiness for the greater good - just a few days ago, for instance, I received a message from a reader who thanked me for the open platform we provided, since reading the comments provided helpful information and closure regarding a firm and an individual there.

Sure, sometimes they may be a bit bitchy (though we try to avoid any targeting non-senior individuals), but useful and interesting market information about a very secretive industry sometimes emerges from unlikely places.

Try and avoid any targeting of "non-senior" individuals?! So unlike you, seniors can't feel "hurt" or be defamed?! ;-) and are you sure you don't selectively protect some "seniors"? Anyway, credit to you for having published that comment. You continue to surprise :-)

Then why are seniors not named here... . . and only poor hapless associates being called by name? Why give a bad name to associates by talking about their departures?? This is a very small industry and no junior lawyer who wants to stay in the industry wants to be identified for wrong reasons. Some degree of discretion on LI part for the sake of budding careers is too much to expect?? Has anyone checked with associates if they want to be named and become source of gossip??! What privacy are we talking about.?

What about AZB's produce [...]'s partnership? Isn't it overdue? Not sure why [...]'s still sticking around considering Zia is only interested in CAM people now and not other well deserving lawyers who are her own produce.

Z promoted last year so shouldn't promote this year? The point is she chose CAM people over her own when they also deserved it as much! For now, Z is only concentrating on keeping Ashwath happy. I think (...) move to (...) has worked towards (...) disadvantage. And Z is known to exploit her people when she knows they don't have a choice! (...) is the biggest example of that! And this is the main reason people don't last at AZB.

Why isn’t azb following SAM cam or KCO and aiming for 100\1000 target?! Is it because it chooses not to or cannot reach 100 partner magic milestone? Or has less profits? Azb lawyers are mostly smug (like Skadden) compared to their peers from other firms. Is it becoz they are better or more confident?? It’s high time there was a study on the DNA and culture of lawyers across firms which is common in US or UK.

On one hand some firms make 20-25 partners in one round, and other tier-1 firms make only 3-4 annually... for law students, must one join bigger sized firms or tight ship powerhouses like snr platinum or azb that make their lawyers wait for 10-13 years for the elusive partnership dream.? There should be a LI story on FIRM-WISE leverage ratios, partner profitability numbers and partner track for students like us to get a better picture of which Indian firms we should join

Most talented NLS students prefer to join the foreign firms given lack of career and track visibility in Indian firms. More transparency and public information can stop this brain drain ..

Z is favouring the Cammies. They are still the fllavour of the season and better quality than the AZb homegrown lot. Explains the non integration of the Cammies who moved to AzB with the old AZB hands at all levels. Apparently even pay differential.

AZB would have been an institution if it's strategy was organic. Over a quarer of its partnership is exAMSS trained and most of its ideas are plagiarised. An institution is always original never a copy. Forget about lawyers they copy basic technology which were implemented in erstwhile AMSS many years back. If AZB had ever thought of institutionalisation - why attempt to sell out to Clifford Chance?

I see a lot of people questioning about the promotion of CAM lateral hires to partnership but if you see there is no one from old AZB who is ready for partnership. Give me 5 names from old AZB who could have been made partners.

Kian I don't think you need to care about what those who are promoted will feel. So long as a comment is not being mean towards those promoted, what is the problem in someone question why xyz wasn't promoted?

Unless it is abusive or racial/ sexist/ communal etc. in nature or confidential or price sensitive I don’t see why you can’t publish it. It is a clamp down on discussion space wherein people are discussing the possibility of an X or a Y being looked over. Why are you censoring that? Unless it one of those listed above. “Embarrassing” is hardly a reason. And it definitely does not take away from those promoted because the focus is why X or a Y has not been. I don’t understand the reason for this kind of high level redactions. Please do unredact the portions above.

Kian:- this is blatant hypocracy!! you openly publish names of those who left azb, but censor names of those who are continuing there and being talked about above! What journalistic standards are being espoused here?!!

As someone who visits this site once a month, its shocking to see this thread still alive and being let to foster like a virus! Only bickering and heartburn spewed here from all sides and stakeholders. Should the FB for lawyers needs to be regulated?? Only if LI would run a story or poll on this, which alas will never happen...!

The names should be published. We should be able to discuss what's fair and what's not.. What is the point otherwise? Plus none of the comments printed without names seem to be mean or offensive? So what's the problem?